Brilliance and Bravery

The Battles ofThermopylae and Salamis

Base Overview

• Athens and Sparta, though bitter rivals, put aside their differences to combat the Persian menace threatening to conquer Greece.

• As the Persians advanced, Sparta set up a defense at Thermopylae, leading other colonies in preparation for battle.

• Xerxes, lord of the Persians, attempted to negotiate with Sparta…

Base Overview: Thermopylae

• Leonidas, King of Sparta, refused offers of land and power if he surrendered, prompting the dignitary to demand that he and his men lay down their arms. This was the dialogue:

• Persian: “Give up your weapons!”• Leonidas: “Come and get them!”• Four days later, Xerxes launched his attack.

Battle Facts: By the NumbersThermopylae

• The Persian forces numbered 2,641,610.• 241,400 Persian Triremes (Warships with

underwater “beaks” that could pierce the hull of enemy ships.)

• Greeks numbered only 6,400 soldiers.

The 300 Spartans

• With Leonidas in the lead, his army-consisting of only 300 men-slaughtered thousands of Persians.

• However, after two days, a Greek named Ephialtes betrayed the army by showing the Persians a path that would allow them to flank the Greeks.

• With the Persians closing in, Leonidas sent all the soldiers but his 300 away, promising to hold the onslaught of Persians. Though all 300 were slain, he allowed the Greeks to escape, and eventually claim a victory.

Salamis

• Persia marches through and burns Athens, but everyone has already fled.

• Themistocles, using brilliant military tactics, traps the Persian ships in a cove and crushes them all.

• The Greeks, against all odds, win the battle against Persia.

Major Themes of the Movie

• Size and scope of the battle/battle strategy• Leonidas’ role in the battle• Betrayal and consequences• Athenian intelligence

Style

• The movie will be a feature-length, action packed docu-drama.

• It will feature large amounts of Bluescreen technology, but parts of it will be filmed on location.

• Actors and computer animation will be utilized.

Roles

• Leonidas: Viggo Mortenson• Xerxes: Alan Rickman• Ephialtes: Brad Dourif (Wormtounge)• Themistocles: Sir Ian McKellen• Spartan Extras: Gerard Butler• Other Greek extras: Matt Damon• Persian Extras: Samuel L. Jackson

Locations

• Salamis, Greek island for setup scenes• New Zealand for battle scenes• Lucasfilms studio for CGI scenes

Dialogue

• Persian Emissary: Is it really that hard to see? Lay down your weapons and submit to Xerxes, and you will be spared!

• Leonidas: We are Spartans! We do not surrender! We will not take on the role of dogs! We will fight to the last breath, and your foolish king shall see the power of a true warrior! Of a Spartan!

• Other Spartans: YAAAAAH!!• Leonidas: (Stabs messenger) I hope my point has been

made clear.

Movie Pitch

The greatest warriors the world has ever seen, matched with the great intellect of the ancient world, clashes with the Lord of one of the biggest empires in history in two epic battles that changed the world forever!